and cooking it slowly for hours and hours and hours. You just fill the pot, go about your day and, voilà, you’ve got something AMAZING once you get home. It’s fun, people! But don’t take my word for it—dust off your crock pot and get busy with these CROCK STARS! Pssst…You’ll need a crock pot with a capacity of four quarts or more for the recipes in this chapter.

You’ll Need: crock pot

Prep: 10 minutes

Cook: 3 to 4 hours (high) or 7 to 8 hours (low)

Two 14.5-ounce cans (about 3 ½ cups) fat-free chicken broth

One 14.75-ounce can cream-style corn

Two 6-ounce cans lump crabmeat, thoroughly drained

One 6-ounce frozen fillet mild white fish (such as tilapia or cod)

2 cups (about 7 ounces) frozen cooked ready-to-eat shrimp

1 cup frozen sweet corn kernels

1 red bell pepper, chopped

½ cup finely chopped onion

½ cup plain light soymilk

½ teaspoon chopped garlic

½ cup instant mashed potato flakes

¼ cup fat-free sour cream

Optional: salt and black pepper

Place all ingredients except potato flakes and sour cream in the crock pot, and mix well. (Yup, that fish fillet goes in whole!)

Cover and cook on high for 3 to 4 hours or on low for 7 to 8 hours.

Stir to break up the fish fillet. Add potato flakes and sour cream, and stir very well. If you like, season to taste with salt and black pepper. Enjoy!

MAKES 9 SERVINGS

You’ll Need: crock pot, bowl

Prep: 10 minutes

Cook: 3 to 4 hours (high) or 7 to 8 hours (low)

1 cup canned tomato sauce

½ cup ketchup

2 tablespoons plus 2 teaspoons brown sugar (not packed)

2 tablespoons plus 2 teaspoons cider vinegar

2 teaspoons garlic powder

1½ pounds raw boneless skinless lean chicken breasts, halved

Optional: crushed red pepper

Place all ingredients except chicken in the crock pot. Stir until mixed. Add chicken and coat well with the sauce.

Cover and cook on high for 3 to 4 hours or on low for 7 to 8 hours, until chicken is fully cooked.

Remove all the chicken and place it in a bowl. Shred each piece using two forks—one to hold the chicken in place and the other to scrape across the meat and shred it. Return the shredded chicken to the crock pot, and mix well with the sauce.

If you’re serving a group, keep the crock pot on its lowest setting, so the chicken stays warm. If you like, season to taste with crushed red pepper. Eat up!

MAKES 7 SERVINGS

You’ll Need: crock pot

Prep: 15 minutes

Cook: 3 to 4 hours (high) or 7 to 8 hours (low)

One 28-ounce can crushed tomatoes

One 15-ounce can pure pumpkin 2 teaspoons chopped garlic

½ tablespoon cayenne pepper, or more to taste

1 teaspoon chili powder

1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice

¼ teaspoon salt, or more to taste

½ teaspoon ground cumin

One 14.5-ounce can diced tomatoes

One 15-ounce can chili beans (pinto beans in chili sauce), not drained

One 15-ounce can black beans, drained and rinsed

½ cup canned diced green chiles

2 cups chopped portabella mushrooms

1½ cups chopped zucchini

1½ cups chopped onion

Add crushed tomatoes, pumpkin, garlic, and all the seasonings to the crock pot. Mix well.

Add diced tomatoes, both types of beans, diced green chiles, and all the veggies. Stir thoroughly.

Cover and cook on high for 3 to 4 hours or on low for 7 to 8 hours. Enjoy!

MAKES 11 SERVINGS

You’ll Need: crock pot

Prep: 10 minutes

Cook: 3 to 4 hours (low)

1 cup chili sauce (the kind found by the ketchup)

¾ cup sugar-free grape or seedless blackberry jam

¾ cup very finely chopped onion

1½ teaspoons Dijon mustard

14 fat-free or nearly fat-free beef franks

Place all ingredients except franks in the crock pot. Stir until completely mixed.

Cut each frank into thirds, leaving you with cocktail-sized franks. Add those to the pot, and gently mix to coat.

Cover and cook on low for 3 to 4 hours.

Stir well and then serve up franks with extra sauce on top!

MAKES 14 SERVINGS

You’ll Need: crock pot

Prep: 10 minutes

Cook: 3 to 4 hours (low)

Four 14.5-ounce cans (about 7 cups) low-fat creamy tomato soup

One 10-ounce can whole baby clams, drained

One 6-ounce can lump crabmeat, drained

8 ounces raw scallops, quartered

8 ounces raw shrimp, peeled, tails removed, deveined

2 bay leaves

4 cloves fresh garlic, crushed

½ teaspoon Worcestershire sauce

Place all ingredients in the crock pot and stir.

Cover and cook on low for 3 to 4 hours.

Remove bay leaves. EAT!

MAKES 9 SERVINGS

You’ll Need: crock pot

Prep: 10 minutes

Cook: 3 to 4 hours (high) or 7 to 8 hours (low)

1¼ pounds raw lean ground turkey

5 cups sliced mushrooms

1 onion, thinly sliced

One 12-ounce jar fat-free turkey gravy

1 tablespoon dry onion soup mix

1 tablespoon cornstarch

Add all ingredients except onion soup mix and cornstarch to the crock pot. Mix well, breaking up the ground turkey as you mix.

Cover and cook on high for 3 to 4 hours or on low for 7 to 8 hours.

Reduce heat to lowest setting. Sprinkle onion soup mix and cornstarch into the crock pot and stir until dissolved. Allow to sit, uncovered, for 5 minutes, or until the mixture has thickened slightly. Enjoy!

MAKES 5 SERVINGS

You’ll Need: crock pot, bowl

Prep: 5 minutes

Cook: 3 to 4 hours (high) or 7 to 8 hours (low)

1 cup canned crushed tomatoes

½ cup jarred roasted red peppers packed in water, drained and chopped

¼ cup canned diced green chiles

1 tablespoon dry taco seasoning mix

½ tablespoon garlic powder

¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper, or more to taste

1/8 teaspoon black pepper, or more to taste

1½ pounds raw boneless skinless lean chicken breasts, halved

Optional: salt

Place all ingredients except chicken in the crock pot. Stir until thoroughly mixed. Add chicken and coat well.

Cover and cook on high for 3 to 4 hours or on low for 7 to 8 hours, until chicken is fully cooked.

Remove all the chicken and place it in a bowl. Shred each piece using two forks—one to hold the chicken in place and the other to scrape across the meat and shred it. Return the shredded chicken to the crock pot, and mix well with the sauce.

If you’re serving a group, keep the crock pot on its lowest setting, so the chicken stays warm. If you like, season to taste with additional crushed red pepper, additional black pepper, and salt. Eat up!

MAKES 6 SERVINGS

You’ll Need: crock pot, bowl

Prep: 15 minutes

Cook: 3 to 4 hours (high) or 7 to 8 hours (low) plus 15 minutes (uncovered)

One 32-ounce bag (about 6 cups) baby carrots

1 onion, sliced

1 red bell pepper, sliced

1 yellow bell pepper, sliced

¼ cup sugar-free apricot preserves

2 tablespoons brown sugar (not packed)

1½ tablespoons light whipped butter or light buttery spread

1 teaspoon cinnamon

½ teaspoon salt, or more to taste

¼ teaspoon nutmeg

1 tablespoon cornstarch

Optional: black pepper, cayenne pepper, ground ginger

Place all veggies in the crock pot.

In a small dish, combine preserves, brown sugar, butter, cinnamon, salt, and nutmeg. Stir well. Top veggies in the crock pot with this mixture.

Use a large spoon to stir the contents of the crock pot up a bit. (Don’t worry if the preserves mixture isn’t completely distributed.)

Cover and cook on high for 3 to 4 hours or on low for 7 to 8 hours.

Once veggies are cooked, turn off the heat on the crock pot. Give contents a good stir, ensuring that the sauce is evenly distributed.

In a small bowl, combine cornstarch with 2 tablespoons cold water, and stir until cornstarch has dissolved. Add to crock pot and mix well.

Leave pot uncovered for 15 minutes to allow sauce to thicken. Stir and, if you like, add additional salt and optional ingredients to taste. Then enjoy!

MAKES 7 SERVINGS

You’ll Need: large bowl, crock pot

Prep: 20 minutes

Cook: 3 to 4 hours (high) or 7 to 8 hours (low)

One 29-ounce can tomato sauce

One 14.5-ounce can diced tomatoes, drained

One 15-ounce can chili beans (pinto beans in chili sauce), not drained

One 15-ounce can red kidney beans, drained and rinsed

1 cup frozen sliced or chopped carrots

1 cup frozen sweet corn kernels

2 bell peppers (in different colors), chopped

1 large onion, chopped

1 to 3 canned chipotle peppers in adobo sauce, chopped, sauce reserved

2 teaspoons chopped garlic

1 teaspoon chili powder

1 teaspoon ground cumin

1 pound raw lean ground turkey

Salt, to taste

Optional topping: fat-free sour cream

Combine all ingredients except turkey and salt in a large bowl. Add 2 teaspoons adobo sauce from the canned chipotle peppers. Mix to combine and coat all beans and veggies with sauce.

Place turkey in the bottom of the crock pot and break up into small chunks. Pour chili mixture on top and mix.

Cover and cook on high for 3 to 4 hours or on low for 7 to 8 hours.

Stir to distribute turkey. Add salt to taste. If you like, top each serving with a little sour cream. Mmmmm!!!

MAKES 12 SERVINGS

You’ll Need: crock pot

Prep: 10 minutes

Cook: 3 to 4 hours (high) or 7 to 8 hours (low)

One 8-ounce can crushed pineapple packed in juice, lightly drained

1/3 cup sweet Asian chili sauce

½ teaspoon reduced-sodium/lite soy sauce

¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper, or more to taste

1 pound raw lean beefsteak filet, cut into about 30 bite-sized pieces

1 onion, finely chopped

Place pineapple, chili sauce, soy sauce, and crushed red pepper in the crock pot. Mix well.

Add beef and onion and stir to coat.

Cover and cook on high for 3 to 4 hours or on low for 7 to 8 hours.

If you like, season to taste with additional crushed red pepper. Serve with excess sauce and toothpicks. Yum!

MAKES 5 SERVINGS

You’ll Need: crock pot, bowl

Prep: 20 minutes

Cook: 3 to 4 hours (high) or 7 to 8 hours (low)

1½ pounds raw boneless skinless lean chicken breasts, halved

Two 14.5-ounce cans (about 3 ½ cups) fat-free chicken broth

One 15-ounce can white beans (such as cannellini), drained and rinsed

One 14.5-ounce can stewed tomatoes, drained

2 carrots, chopped

1 small onion, finely diced

2 cups bagged dry cole slaw

1 cup frozen peas

½ teaspoon salt

¼ teaspoon ground thyme

1 bay leaf

Place all ingredients in the crock pot and stir.

Cover and cook on high for 3 to 4 hours or on low for 7 to 8 hours, until chicken is fully cooked.

Remove the chicken pieces and place them in a bowl. Shred each piece using two forks—one to hold the chicken in place and the other to scrape across the meat and shred it. Return the shredded chicken to the crock pot, and stir into the soup.

Remove the bay leaf. Serve up and enjoy!

MAKES 10 SERVINGS